Uganda

Dear Don

I know you will be pleased to hear that the container of goods arrived safely in Fort Portal at the end of March and the boxes that you sent were very gratefully received. I am working at a secondary school called Nyakasura School, and there is an associated school called Nyakasura Junior School to which I took your boxes as well as some books and sports equipment. The whole school assembled outside (the sports field belongs to the secondary school) to receive the gifts. I am sure they will make good use of the exercise books and resources.

These schools have almost nothing in the way of books and resources, and classes of 80-150 children, often sitting on the floor and learning by rote. A gift such as yours is therefore hugely appreciated. The photos show the school gathered to received the boxes, opening a box, and the staff outside the classroom block. The view is spectacular!

I am back in England for 4 weeks holiday and will be going out again in May.

Many thanks for your contribution to education in Uganda!

Best wishes

Pat Heathcote

Belarus

Report and galleries for visit to Belarus 9th to 16th April, 2006

 

http://www.unesco.8m.com/Bel2006a/belrep2006a.htm

Uganda

Dear Don,

I have been receiving your emails and the Kingdom particularly the Youth Ministry is willing to work with you. I know we have alot to share and we are in line with UNESCO objectives.

I was touring the www.UNESCO.co.uk website and I got some information mainly concerning your programmes in Uganda. I have visited Kabubbu Community Library and I appreciated the work being done to help the Community.

Hope you got my attachments so that you can read through and see how we can go on. The Minister is out of the Country but she gave me a go ahead to discuss with you all the possible ways your Organisation can help us to accomplish most of  the work in Kingdom basing on Education, Culture and good Health. Nice time.

Joel Ssekimpi,

Commissioner HIV/AIDS Programmes,

Ministry of Youth Affairs,

Buganda Kingdom.

Nigeria

Hi Don,

This is to let you know that I have now delivered the educational posters sent through myself to a school in owerri, Nigeria. The school proprietors were delighted with the supplies. I have given them your email address so that they can contact you direct whenever they can find internet access. I spent a night in Owerri and got to see the building work first hand. The school kids andf their teachers were on holiday butI know that the resources you sent will be put to good use once the school walls are plastered in the near future.

For now, please accept my thanks for this wonderful work you do with the developing world.

Charity

Belarus

Belarus

24 April 2006

PRESS RELEASE

CHERNOBYL 20 YEARS LATER

On 26 April 1986 the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Station was struck by an accident recognized by the United Nations to be the largest radiological catastrophe in the history of humankind. The world that for over forty years had faced the insanity of a nuclear military conflict about to unleash showed its sheer unfitness and vulnerability to the force of incontrollable atom.

The Republic of Belarus faced with after-effects of the accident in what may be called a tragedy on a national scale has the Chernobyl problem pushed to the top of its agenda. The radioactive nuclides contaminated 21 per cent of the country's total territory, the impact of radioactive iodine affected nearly every citizen. Following the disaster, the population of Belarus continued to be exposed to chronical external and internal irradiation from the long-term radioactive nuclides in the natural environment. The economy of the affected areas was damaged immensely. The agro-industrial sector and forestry that had made the whole region better off got into a particularly complicated situation. UN experts estimate the damage caused to Belarus at 235 billion US dollars.

Overcoming the consequences of the catastrophe and ensuring safety of people have been primary policies of the Belarus government for two decades. Despite difficulties arising from the transition period, the efforts of the Republic of Belarus have been mainly focused on mitigating the after-effects of the disaster.

In the past years, many efforts met with success. Legislation was enacted to lay the basis to almost every necessary area of work. It included Laws of the Republic of Belarus "On social protection of people who suffered from the Chernobyl disaster", "On the legal status of the areas affected by the radioactive contamination resulting from the Chernobyl disaster", "On radiation safety of the population".

The government of the Republic of Belarus spent over 17 billion US dollars to address the whole range of post-Chernobyl problems, resettlement of 140,000 people included. Nearly 2 billion US dollars will be allocated to implement the third national programme for 2006-2010 to mitigate the after-effects. However, it is clear that Belarus does not have enough resources to handle all problems in place.

Unheard amplitude of the tragedy, integrated and unique nature of its consequences put this disaster on a global scale. Obviously, at this point, that is two decades later, not a single country, be it even a super power or a group of countries, would find itself in a position to settle on its own the problems of a manmade catastrophe of this calibre.

Clearly, efficient and coordinated international co-operation should be in place to mitigate the consequences of this kind of disaster.

 

In a way, Chernobyl resolutions of the UN General Assembly serve as a mirror and, importantly enough, are instrumental to the international co-operation.

In this context you can hardly overestimate the resolution of the UN General Assembly 60th session "Strengthening of international cooperation and coordination of efforts to study, mitigate and minimize the consequence of the Chernobyl disaster" of 14 November 2005. This resolution reflects dynamism of the Chernobyl international co-operation and a transition to the strategy of integrated rehabilitation of the contaminated areas which consists in the recovery of socioeconomic activities and the provision of safe conditions of living.

That 69 UN member states decided to co-author the resolution is clear evidence of the fact that influential members of the international community appreciate the endeavours of the affected countries to address the post-Chernobyl problems and support the appeal to enhance the work of the interested UN agencies and organisations aimed at funding the medical, social, economic and ecological programmes.

The UN coordinating mechanisms, Quadrilateral Coordination Committee on International Chernobyl Co-operation and the Ad Hoc Inter-agency Task Force on Chernobyl, enjoy a significant potential in ensuring the implementation of the resolution.

The accident at the Chernobyl NPS was a conspicuous example of how insufficient the knowledge of nuclear and radiation disasters was scientifically. The first years in the wake of the accident saw every decision to safeguard the population taken against the backdrop of a lack of time, without scientific substantiation based on existing theories and practices, since the Chernobyl disaster was unparalleled by any other nuclear incident. Hence, the focus shifted drastically to the coordination of research and the practical implementation of recommendations.

The development of a unified scientific picture of the Chernobyl consequences proved successful at the UN International Scientific Forum on Chernobyl in 2003-2005, the idea of which was conceived during a visit by IAEA Director General, Mohammed El-Baradei, to Belarus in August of 2001. An important objective of the Forum was also to define the most likely trends of the situation and create a scientific base for coordinated international efforts to rehabilitate the affected areas in a medium term.

The outcomes of the Forum presented at the final conference in Vienna on 6-7 September 2005 create a political and expert platform to continue and develop international Chernobyl co-operation. The report of the Forum recognizes the need to go ahead with studying the medical and ecological problems of the catastrophe since the impact on people and environment is long-standing and problems caused by the disaster are far from being completely investigated. Further, an important outcome of the Forum is the recognition of a need to transform to a new strategy of the rehabilitation aimed at the sustainable development of the affected areas.

The international conference "Chernobyl 20 years later. The strategy of rehabilitation and sustainable development of affected areas" held 19-21 April in Minsk was a high-profile international event. The conference drew conclusions from the 20-year efforts of the international community in overcoming the Chernobyl consequences, recommended the long-term rehabilitation and socioeconomic development of the affected areas, pinpointed the ways of how to enhance the international Chernobyl co-operation.

The Republic of Belarus is ready to actively co-operate with UN agencies and organisations in Chernobyl area. We call on donor countries to render all necessary financial assistance in handling complicated issues of today.

However, seeing the Chernobyl issue as part of the economic recovery and sustainable development, Belarus has always paid special attention to the overcoming of long-term medical and ecological after-effects of the disaster. The Republic of Belarus is grateful to donor countries and international organisations that assist in studying and overcoming these after-effects. Particular attention should be paid to diagnosing and detecting an early stage of oncological or cardiac diseases, especially, in children, and this requires modern medical equipment.

The Chernobyl disaster became the largest nuclear accident in the history of humankind to determine the destiny of many countries. The 20th Anniversary put newer tasks on our agenda that would require the enhancement of our shared efforts in Chernobyl area for the good of those who suffered.

 

 

--

EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF BELARUS

IN THE UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND

6, Kensington Court, London, W8 5DL,

tel. 020 7937 3288, fax. 020 7361 0005,

e-mail: uk@belembassy.org

Website: www.belembassy.org/uk

Chernobyl Legacy Lingers On and On……

 

 

 

A Coalition of Charities working together for the 20th Anniversary of the Nuclear Disaster,

in April 2006, to raise awareness about Chernobyl’s legacy of pollution and ill health.

Chernobyl Legacy Lingers On and On……

Twenty years on from the World’s Worst Nuclear Disaster the children of Belarus and northern Ukraine  continue to suffer from living on land blighted by radiation. The Anniversary, on April 26th, will be not only an occasion for remembering a terrible event, but also for gathering support for those still suffering its tragic legacy.

Thyroid cancer has risen by more than 100 times in the Gomel Region, the most contaminated part of Belarus. This is the only cancer which is indisputably caused by Chernobyl.

But members of Chernobyl charities who travel regularly to Belarus believe that many other illnesses are likely to be  linked to the radiation – leukaemia and brain tumours in children, breast cancer, stomach and bowel cancer, heart disease, respiratory illnesses and bone disorders. And there are many children born with disabilities or rare genetic disorders, despite the fact that there has been a dramatic drop in the birth rate since the accident.

The Chernobyl charities working in Britain have come together to commemorate the 20th Anniversary of the disaster, under the banner ‘Remember Chernobyl’. They have launched an Appeal for more research into the health effects of Chernobyl which will be presented to the United Nations at the end of April, and are promoting events around the country to focus attention on the continuing impact of the disaster.

Claire Chettoe, Co-ordinator of the Remember Chernobyl Coalition, said ‘We hope to raise awareness throughout the country about the need for ongoing support for the children living under the shadow of Chernobyl. Every year, particularly in the Summer, Chernobyl charities in Britain bring several thousand children from Belarus to this country for a recuperative holiday. Four weeks of fresh air, clean food and a relaxing holiday gives a great boost to their damaged immune systems.  Local families who host the children usually find it a rewarding experience and we hope that the raised level of interest around the anniversary will bring in new families for the future’

Chernobyl Charities are also heavily involved in projects in Belarus to improve the healthof children and families, and the Remember Chernobyl Coalition is promoting support for the Belarusian Children's Hospice, which cares for children with cancer and other life limiting diseases in many parts of Belarus. 

Much of the radiation which fell on Belarus was caesium 137. Some of this was carried right across Europe to land on the hills of Scotland, Cumbria and Wales in rainfall. Still today there are hill farms where grazing is restricted because of this, and could remain so for several years.

In Belarus there are towns and villages which received more than 1,000 times the level of caesium which fell on our hills. The families living there are aware that their children are eating food every day which may be richer in radio-nuclides than vitamins.

For information about national events around the time of the Anniversary and to find out more about Chernobyl and its ongoing effects, visit www.rememberchernobyl.org

For further information about the ‘Remember Chernobyl’ Coalition or to arrange interviews contact Linda Walker (Chernobyl Children’s Project UK) on 01457 862112 / 863534  or 07976 653610

or Claire Chettoe, 01749 676248 (evenings)

Email: linda@ccprojectuk.fsnet.co.uk  or visit www.chernobyl-children.org.uk

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Metta Centre Nepal

Princesses on their educational oldest city day tour ...  and the museum ...in which we are not allowed to take picture.  We had feeding the fish at the large fish pond...  later a group picture at the world famous 5 storey temple...  and another temple nearby.   Tea break at small cafe..  they eat  "MOMO" it is a dumpling inside meat...princesses like very much.   Renu was not there since she is having another 4 days to complete her exam..

Piya